Department of Health and Social Care

HIV Infection: Screening

Baroness Barker: To ask Her Majesty's Government which local authorities provided access to HIV self-sampling services through (1) the national HIV self-sampling service, (2) Sexual Health London, and (3) another service; and which local authorities did not fund access to HIV self-sampling services in each year from 2015 to 2020.

Lord Bethell: Data on which local authorities provided access to HIV self-sampling through Sexual Health London or other services are not published by the local authority commissioners.Public Health England publishes data on the local authorities that participate in the National HIV Self-Sampling Service in the National HIV Self-Sampling Service annual reports. The attached tables show the local authorities signed up to the HIV self-sampling service from 2015 to 2019. The report for 2020 will be published in the spring of 2021.Local authorities HIV self-sampling service (docx, 32.3KB)

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Housing: Construction

Baroness Thornhill: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to consult withlocal authorities on the development of targets for new homes.

Lord Greenhalgh: We consulted on changes to the standard method formula for assessing local housing need and have now considered the responses carefully. On Wednesday 16th December we announced that in order to ensure that the country meets the challenge of delivering 300,000 homes a year by the mid-2020s, we changed the formula to focus greater need into urban areas to maximise existing infrastructure and to support development that reduces the need for high-carbon travel.We believe the new method achieves the balance between these objectives whilst also providing certainty and stability during a period of economic uncertainty for our communities, businesses, and development sector. The figures we published alongside the new formula are only indicative, and local housing need remains the starting point for planning for housing need. Authorities should consider how this is best met based on their local circumstance, based on land availability, and relevant constraints.We continue to engage with those authorities who are facing challenges. The Spending Review confirmed initial funding of £7.1 billion for the National House Building Fund (NHBF) over the next four years to unlock up to 860,000 homes.

Environment Protection: Planning

Baroness Thornhill: To ask Her Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that any reforms to the planning system protect the environment.

Lord Greenhalgh: Our proposals in Planning for the Future seek to improve environmental outcomes. This will be achieved by amending the National Planning Policy Framework to ensure that it targets those areas where a reformed planning system can most effectively play a role in mitigating and adapting to climate change and maximising environmental benefits, while protecting and enhancing the most valuable and important habitats and species in England. The Government will respond to this consultation in due course. The Environment Bill will make 10 per cent net gains for biodiversity mandatory for most new developments, and also introduce Local Nature Recovery Strategies to secure enhancements through development schemes and contributions. We have also committed to review the environmental assessment process to help promote a clean, green recovery from the effects of coronavirus, and are taking this forward as part of the Planning for the Future reforms. Environmental protection will be at the heart of this review and where possible, any new framework will go further to take advantage of opportunities for environmental improvement.

Affordable Housing: Construction

Baroness Thornhill: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the possible impact the changes proposed in the Planning White Paper will have on the delivery of affordable housing.

Lord Greenhalgh: The?proposal?to create a new Infrastructure Levy,?as set out in the?Planning for the Future?White Paper,?will?support?a more streamlined and accessible planning system. The new Levy will be designed to deliver at least as much onsite affordable housing as at present and will continue to be collected and spent at the local level, on priorities including infrastructure and affordable housing.The consultation on the White Paper closed on 29 October. We are currently analysing the consultation responses and will publish a response in the Spring which will set out our decisions on the proposed way forward.

UK Shared Prosperity Fund

Lord Dodds of Duncairn: To ask Her Majesty's Government what recent discussions they have had about the UK Shared Prosperity Fund with (1) the devolved administrations, and (2) local authorities.

Lord Greenhalgh: The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) will help to level up and create opportunity across the UK in places most in need such as ex-industrial areas, deprived towns and rural and coastal communities, and for people who face labour market barriers.The Fund will operate UK-wide. We will continue to engage the devolved administrations and other key stakeholders as we develop the fund's investment framework and in advance of its publication.To help local areas prepare over 2021-22 for the introduction of the UKSPF, the government will provide additional funding to support our communities to pilot programmes and new approaches. We will work closely with stakeholders on how best to use this additional funding to prepare for the introduction of the UKSPF.

UK Shared Prosperity Fund

Lord Dodds of Duncairn: To ask Her Majesty's Government which government departments will fund the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.

Lord Greenhalgh: The UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) will help to level up and create opportunity across the UK in places most in need such as ex-industrial areas, deprived towns and rural and coastal communities, and for people who face labour market barriers. It will operate UK-wide.The Spending Review recognised that many policy challenges require cooperation across multiple departments. The Government published its Heads of Terms for the UK Shared Prosperity Fund at Spending Review 2020 and to help local areas prepare over 2021-22 for the introduction of the UKSPF, the Government will provide additional funding to support our communities to pilot programmes and new approaches. Further details will be published in the new year.

Northern Ireland Office

Terrorism: Northern Ireland

Lord Empey: To ask Her Majesty's Government whether they have a timetable for introducing their proposals on addressing legacy issues in Northern Ireland.

Viscount Younger of Leckie: The Government has been clear that it will bring forward legislation to address the legacy of the Troubles that focuses on reconciliation, delivers for victims, and ends the cycle of investigations that has failed victims and veterans alike. Notwithstanding the challenging circumstances presented by the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, which has affected progress, we are committed to working with all parts of the community in Northern Ireland to move forward on this issue as quickly as possible.

Department for Work and Pensions

Automation

Lord Taylor of Warwick: To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have to increase spending on job support and skills training for jobs at the highest risk of redundancy due to automation.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: o The department (DWP) has a comprehensive package of support through the Plan for Jobs, with new funding to ensure more people will get tailored support to help them find work. This will include:support from Jobcentre Plus Work Coachesthe recently launched Kickstart Scheme - a £2 billion fund which will create paid, quality 6-month work placements for over 250,000 young people on Universal Credit, deemed to be at risk of long term unemploymentthe new DWP Youth Offer andthe recently announced Restart programme. The government is investing £2.9 billion in the Restart programme over 3 years. Restart will provide intensive and tailored support to over a million people who have been unemployed for over 12 months in England and Wales to help them find work.o We recognise that that automation may result in job losses in some sectors, but we also expect jobs to be created in other sectors, to allow unemployed people to pivot into priority sectors, for example in construction, and social care.o In the ‘Plan for Jobs’, the Chancellor announced an extra 32,000 Sector-based Work Academy Programme participant starts in 2020/21, providing £17 million for the Department for Education to triple the number of associated vocational training placements. DWP’s Secretary of State also pledged to increase further the number of people taking part in 2021/22. The Sector-based Work Academy Programme offers training, work experience and a guaranteed job interview to those ready to start a job. This is alongside the expansion of support for traineeships in England and for apprenticeships, which enable people to work while having a structured training programme.

Housing: Coronavirus

Baroness Lister of Burtersett: To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the consensus statement by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies Housing, household transmission and ethnicity, published on 26 November, and in particular its recommendations on (1) the under-occupancy levy, (2) the benefit cap, and (3) the No Recourse to Public Funds rule.

Baroness Stedman-Scott: No assessment has been made. (1) The removal of the spare room subsidy has been an important tool to help to manage housing support expenditure and enable mobility within the social rented sector. Making a change to this policy would not increase the size of properties people are currently living in or increase their bedroom entitlement under local authority lettings policies. (2) There are currently no plans to change the Benefit Cap. The Benefit Cap ensures fairness between those receiving out-of-work benefits and taxpayers. The Government firmly believes that, where possible, it is in the best interests of children to be in working households and the benefit cap provides a clear incentive to move into work. A child living in a household where every adult is working is about 5 times less likely to be in relative poverty than a child in a household where nobody works. Universal Credit claimants with household earnings of at least £604 in an assessment period are exempt from the cap along with the most vulnerable claimants that are entitled to disability benefits and carer benefits. (3) The decision to apply a no recourse to public funds (NRPF) condition as part of a non-UK national’s immigration status is a Home Office policy matter. Non-UK nationals and family members who are issued with a residence permit with a NRPF condition are not eligible to access taxpayer-funded benefits such as Universal Credit, Child Benefit or housing assistance for the duration of their leave to remain. DWP has no powers to award taxpayer-funded benefits to an individual whose Home Office immigration status specifies no recourse to public funds. Public funds do not include contributions-based benefits such as New Style Job Seekers Allowance. Non-UK nationals can apply for a change to their NRPF condition if, since being granted leave to remain, their financial circumstances have changed and they have become destitute or there are now particularly compelling reasons relating to the welfare of their child on account of their very low income, or there are now exceptional circumstances in their case relating to their financial circumstances. Winter support package funding is being provided to local authorities, with more scope for distribution to individuals with no recourse to public funds. It will be at the discretion of local authorities to ensure those who need it most receive it. Local authorities may also provide basic safety net support if it is established that there is a genuine care need that does not arise solely from destitution, for example, where there are community care needs, migrants with serious health problems or family cases where the wellbeing of a child is in question.